October 5-6, 2010
Washington, DC

 

“Exchanges, together with other forms of cultural and educational outreach, are a quintessentially American form of diplomacy that I hope to increase, to amplify, and to sustain in a lasting and meaningful way,” Ann Stock, Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, told Alliance members during her plenary address at the 2010 Alliance Membership Meeting, held October 5-6 in Washington, DC.

“Our combined commitment to these efforts will strengthen our partnership and our common goal of promoting mutual understanding between Americans and people around the world,” Stock said.

Assistant Secretary Stock’s speech [see full text] not only kicked off this meeting that included 129 representatives from 58 Alliance member organizations and more than 20 representatives of the Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, but also set a tone that permeated the entire gathering: a “reset” of the Alliance-ECA partnership to more effectively partner on key programs and priorities and to move international exchange programs into the 21^st century. As Assistant Secretary Stock recounted:

One of my very first meetings [as Assistant Secretary] was with [Alliance executive director Michael McCarry] and several Alliance representatives, along with ECA’s leadership. Our relationship is both wide and diverse, encompassing broadly shared issues as well as a myriad of specific details. 

As we talked, it became apparent that we needed to forge a new partnership—one based not just on program and participant growth, but on enhanced cooperation. Because you are our key partner on the front lines of international engagement, we decided to hit the proverbial ‘reset’ button and find ways where we could work together.

In addition to Ms. Stock’s address, highlights of the 2010 Membership Meeting included an ECA Senior Official panel discussion featuring Stanley Colvin, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Private Sector Exchange, Marianne Craven, Managing Director of Academic Programs, and Chris Miner, Managing Director of Professional and Cultural Exchanges; eight Task Force breakout sessions featuring substantive discussion between Alliance members and ECA representatives; and a reception at the Embassy of Australia.

The Membership Meeting also highlighted the Alliance-ECA partnership in two other significant ways: 1) the announcement of the publication of the 2011 International Exchange Locator [available for pre-order here], and 2) the convening of a public meeting following the conclusion of the Alliance event to discuss “ways forward” for the Summer Work/Travel Program. While this SWT meeting was convened and sponsored by the Department, the Alliance was privileged to play a key role in the creation of the meeting’s discussion points, a fact that further highlighted the theme first set by Ms. Stock: mutual collaboration for maximum results.

Remarks by Assistant Secretary Stock

In her speech [see full text], Stock laid out her priorities as Assistant Secretary, as she noted, in greater detail than she had done publicly thus far. This impressive and ambitious list of priorities includes:

o   Spearheading efforts to find new ways to reach younger and more diverse audiences, at home and abroad;

o   Working to ensure the safety and well being of youth exchange participants – including enhanced regulatory oversight of high school programs, growth and restructuring in the youth programs office, and the creation of an independent monitoring unit;

o   Strengthening the Summer Work/Travel program, including building awareness of potential fraud issues and examining ways to provide safeguards for participants;

o   Complementing long-standing inbound undergraduate exchange programs with expanded efforts to provide young Americans with study abroad opportunities ;

o   Expanding the EducationUSA advising network;

o   Providing “opportunity and empowerment” for women and girls, including such new programs as TechWomen, a professional mentorship program linking women from the Middle East and North Africa with their counterparts in Silicon Valley;

o   Expanding English language programs, as well as critical language exchanges abroad for American students and teachers;

o   Increasing cultural exchanges with new programs such as smART Power, which will send 15 American visual artists abroad for 6-12 week to collaboratively create new works of art.

Assistant Secretary Stock “recognized and saluted” the Alliance membership for its work implementing and strengthening exchanges, and also urged them to “collaborate to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of the 21^st century.”

Business meeting, Board changes, and a retirement

At last year’s Board and Membership Meeting, the Alliance membership voted to amend the by-laws and transition from a “board of the whole” to a 15-person Board of Directors. With this act, the Alliance membership acknowledged the need for our expanding organization to have a focused and flexible leadership group at its helm, and to allow gatherings of the Alliance membership to focus on substantive program issues rather than governance tasks. Key highlights of the 2010 business meeting included:

o   A report from Treasurer Steve Trooboff, noting that the Alliance’s 2009 audit was clean, that current expenses and next year’s budget are sound, and that the Alliance now possess reserves exceeding more than six months of expenses, a goal set by the Alliance Executive Committee several years ago.

o   An introduction by Trooboff of the first three Alliance Partners, a new membership category created at last year’s meeting for organizations that provide services — such as insurance coverage or tax preparation — to U.S. exchange sponsors. These new Alliance members are: Taxback.com and ISPS, represented at the meeting by Fidelma McGuirk and Aiofe Twohig, and Compass Benefits Group, represented by John Fleming.

o   A Nominations Committee Report by Mariam Assefa, Nominations Committee Chair. The Alliance membership elected Lynn Shotwell, Executive Director of the American Council on International Personnel (ACIP), to serve another year term as Vice Chair. Goran Rannefors, President of the EF Foundation for Foreign Study, was elected as Treasurer, taking over for Trooboff, who plans to retire at the end of the year. 

Other new Board members elected include: John McNamara, President of Alliance Abroad Group; Norm Peterson, Policy Advisory Board Chair for the Association of International Education Administrators; Sharon Wilkinson, Senior Vice President of Meridian International Center; and Adam Weinberg, President of World Learning.

Finishing their terms as Board members are: Mariam Assefa, President of World Education Services (WES), Goran Rannefors of EF (who continues as Treasurer, as noted above), Michael Allen, Interim Associate Vice President, International Programs & Services, at the American Association of Community Colleges, and Robert Coonrod, former Chief Operating Officer of Meridian International Center.

o   Finally, Steve Trooboff, who is not only retiring from his tenure on the Alliance board but also from his role as President and CEO of CIEE: Council for International Educational Exchange, was recognized by Christine Schulze, Chair of the Alliance Board of Directors, and Michael McCarry, Executive Director of the Alliance, for his excellent and unwavering service to the Alliance and the field of international exchange for the past 20 years.

Interaction with ECA colleagues

On the afternoon of October 5 and the morning of October 6, the Alliance membership broke into task force meetings of specific exchange areas to interact with their ECA colleagues and discuss programmatic issues. Specific meetings and participants were:

Summer Work/Travel

ECA representative:  None, due to SWT meeting on Oct. 6
Alliance facilitator:  Elizabeth Chazottes, AIPT

J-1 High School

ECA representatives:  Maha Ammar and Karen Hawkins

Alliance facilitator:  Libby Cryer, PAX

International Visitor Leadership Program

ECA representatives:  Sana Abed-Kotob, Aisha Tyus, and Alison Moylan

Alliance facilitator:  Beverly Attallah, AED

Office of Academic Programs

ECA representatives:  Roz Swenson, Paul Hiemstra, and Larry Corwin

Alliance facilitator:  Joyce Warner, IREX

Citizen/Youth/Sports/Cultural Exchanges

ECA representatives:  Mary Deane Conners, Carolyn Lantz, Marjorie Ames, and Adam Meier

Alliance facilitator:  Libby Cryer, PAX

Training/Intern

ECA representative:  Beth Melofchik

Alliance facilitator:  Elizabeth Chazottes, AIPT

Au Pair

ECA representative:  Julia Findlay

Alliance facilitator:  Ruth Ferry, Au Pair in America

Camp Counselor
                               
ECA representative:  Ida Abell

Alliance facilitator:  Christine Schulze, Concordia Language Villages

Many thanks to all of the ECA staff and Alliance members who made these sessions the excellent, substantive discussions they were roundly reported to be. Summaries of each meeting are being prepared and will be circulated to the Alliance membership.

Reception at the Embassy of Australia

Following the conclusion of task force meetings on October 5, Alliance members strolled three blocks from the Dupont Hotel to the Embassy of Australia for an evening reception. Members were welcomed by Mark Darby, Education Counsellor at the Embassy, who knows well the work of Alliance members from his long period of service as the Executive Director of the Australian-American Fulbright Commission.